Quasi-state
A quasi-state (some times referred to as state-like entity[2] or formatively a proto-state[3][2]) is a political entity that does not represent a fully autonomous sovereign state with its own institutions.[4]
The precise definition of quasi-state in political literature fluctuates depending on the context in which it is used. It has been used by some modern scholars to describe the self-governing British colonies and dependencies that exercised a form of home rule but remained crucial parts of the British Empire and subject firstly to the metropole's administration.[5][6] Similarly, the Republics of the Soviet Union, which represented administrative units with their own respective national distinctions, have also been described as quasi-states.[4]
In the 21st century usage, the term quasi-state has most often been evoked in reference to militant secessionist groups who claim, and exercise some form of territorial control over, a specific region, but which lack institutional cohesion.[5][failed verification – see discussion] Such quasi-states include the Republika Srpska and Herzeg-Bosnia during the Bosnian War,[5] the Republic of Serbian Krajina during the Croatian War of Independence,[7] and Azawad during the 2012 Tuareg rebellion.[8] The Islamic State is also widely held to be an example of a modern quasi-state or proto-state.[9][2][10][11]
History
The term "proto-state" has been used in reference to contexts as far back as
Most ancient proto-states were the product of tribal societies, consisting of relatively short-lived confederations of communities that united under a single warlord or chieftain endowed with symbolic authority and military rank.[12] These were not considered sovereign states since they rarely achieved any degree of institutional permanence and authority was often exercised over a mobile people rather than measurable territory.[12] Loose confederacies of this nature were the primary means of embracing a common statehood by people in many regions, such as the Central Asian steppes, throughout ancient history.[14]
Proto-states proliferated in Western Europe during the Middle Ages, likely as a result of a trend towards political decentralisation following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire and the adoption of feudalism.[15] While theoretically owing allegiance to a single monarch under the feudal system, many lesser nobles administered their own fiefs as miniature "states within states" that were independent of each other.[16] This practice was especially notable with regards to large, decentralised political entities such as the Holy Roman Empire, that incorporated many autonomous and semi-autonomous proto-states.[17]
Following the Age of Discovery, the emergence of European colonialism resulted in the formation of colonial proto-states in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.[18] A few colonies were given the unique status of protectorates, which were effectively controlled by the metropole but retained limited ability to administer themselves, self-governing colonies, dominions, and dependencies.[5] These were distinct administrative units that each fulfilled many of the functions of a state without actually exercising full sovereignty or independence.[18] Colonies without a sub-national home rule status, on the other hand, were considered administrative extensions of the colonising power rather than true proto-states.[19] Colonial proto-states later served as the basis for a number of modern nation states, particularly on the Asian and African continents.[18]
During the twentieth century, some proto-states existed as not only distinct administrative units, but their own theoretically self-governing republics joined to each other in a political union such as the socialist federal systems observed in Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and the Soviet Union.[5][4][20]
Another form of proto-state that has become especially common since the end of World War II[citation needed] is established through the unconstitutional seizure of territory by an insurgent or militant group that proceeds to assume the role of a de facto government.[9] Although denied recognition and bereft of civil institutions, insurgent proto-states may engage in external trade, provide social services, and even undertake limited diplomatic activity.[21] These proto-states are usually formed by movements drawn from geographically concentrated ethnic or religious minorities, and are thus a common feature of inter-ethnic civil conflicts.[22] This is often due to the inclinations of an internal cultural identity group seeking to reject the legitimacy of a sovereign state's political order, and create its own enclave where it is free to live under its own sphere of laws, social mores, and ordering.[22] Since the 1980s a special kind of insurgent statehood has emerged in form of the "Jihadi proto-state", as the Islamist concept of statehood is extremely flexible. For instance, a Jihadi emirate can be simply understood as a territory or group ruled by an emir; accordingly, it might rule a significant area or just a neighborhood. Regardless of its extent, the assumption of statehood provides Jihadi militants with important internal legitimacy and cementes their self-identification as frontline society opposed to certain enemies.[9]
The accumulation of territory by an insurgent force to form a sub-national geopolitical system and eventually, a proto-state, was a calculated process in China during the
Theoretical basis
The definition of a proto-state is not concise, and has been confused by the interchangeable use of the terms state, country, and nation to describe a given territory.[29] The term proto-state is preferred to "proto-nation" in an academic context, however, since some authorities also use nation to denote a social, ethnic, or cultural group capable of forming its own state.[29]
A proto-state does not meet the four essential criteria for statehood as elaborated upon in the
Throughout modern history, partially autonomous regions of larger recognised states, especially those based on a historical precedent or ethnic and cultural distinctiveness that places them apart from those who dominate the state as a whole, have been considered proto-states.[5] Home rule generates a sub-national institutional structure that may justifiably be defined as a proto-state.[31] When a rebellion or insurrection seizes control and begins to establish some semblance of administration in regions within national territories under its effective rule, it has also metamorphosed into a proto-state.[32] These wartime proto-states, sometimes known as insurgent states, may eventually transform the structure of a state altogether, or demarcate their own autonomous political spaces.[32] While not a new phenomenon, the modern formation of a proto-states in territory held by a militant non-state entity was popularised by Mao Zedong during the Chinese Civil War, and the national liberation movements worldwide that adopted his military philosophies.[23] The rise of an insurgent proto-state was sometimes also an indirect consequence of a movement adopting Che Guevara's foco theory of guerrilla warfare.[23]
Secessionist proto-states are likeliest to form in preexisting states that lack secure boundaries, a concise and well-defined body of citizens, or a single sovereign power with a monopoly on the legitimate use of military force.[33] They may be created as a result of putsches, insurrections, separatist political campaigns, foreign intervention, sectarian violence, civil war, and even the bloodless dissolution or division of the state.[33]
Proto-states can be important regional players, as their existence affects the options available to state actors, either as potential allies or as impediments to their political or economic policy articulations.[32]
List of proto-states
Constituent proto-states
Current
This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. The specific problem is: Some of the below are considered "constituent countries" of a particular polity (such as those of the Netherlands) or have been granted significant autonomy within an otherwise unitary state, such as New Caledonia or Åland. (November 2022) |
Former
Secessionist, insurgent, and self-proclaimed autonomous proto-states
Current
Former
See also
- Aspirant state
- Deep state
- Failed state
- List of sovereign states
- Nation-building
- Rump state
- Sovereign state
- State-building
Notes and references
Annotations
- Transitional Federal Government. However, Jubaland has continued to persist as a more or less autonomous state.[39]
- ^ The erosion of Portuguese military control over northern Mozambique during the Mozambican War of Independence allowed local guerrillas to establish a proto-state there, which survived until the war ended in 1974. Home to about a million people, the miniature insurgent proto-state was managed by FRELIMO's civilian wing and was able to provide administrative services, open trade relations with Tanzania, and even supervise the construction of its own schools and hospitals with foreign aid.[21]
- ^ In course of the First Liberian Civil War, the Liberian central government effectively collapsed, allowing warlords to establish their own fiefs. One of the most powerful rebel leaders in Liberia, Charles Taylor, set up his own domain in a way resembling an actual state: He reorganised his militia into a military-like organisation (split into Army, Marines, Navy, and Executive Mansion Guard), established his de facto capital at Gbarnga, and created a civilian government and justice system under his control that were supposed to enforce law and order. The area under his control was commonly called "Taylorland" or "Greater Liberia" and even became somewhat stable and peaceful until it largely disintegrated in 1994/5 as result of attacks by rival militias. In the end, however, Taylor won the civil war and was elected President of Liberia, with his regime becoming the new central government.[69][70]
- ^ See Tibetan sovereignty debate
References
- ^ Fairfield, Hannah; Wallace, Tim; Watkins, Derek (21 May 2015). "How ISIS Expands". The New York Times. New York. Archived from the original on 23 May 2015. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
- ^ Wikidata Q105755921.
A term sometimes used to describe entities with many, but not all, the criteria of statehood . . . which are nonetheless possessed of a measure of international personality. . . . a term of international relations, and certainly not of international law, it connotes former colonies . . .
- ^ "How the Islamic State Declared War on the World". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
- ^ ISBN 978-0765800497.
- ^ ISBN 978-1107161627.
- ISBN 978-0-521-44783-6.
- ^ "HIC: VJESNIK, Podlistak, 16 i 17. travnja 2005., VELIKOSRPSKA TVOREVINA NA HRVATSKOM TLU: IZVORNI DOKUMENTI O DJELOVANJU 'REPUBLIKE SRPSKE KRAJINE' (XXIX.)". Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2015.
- ^ a b Alvarado, David (May 2012). "Independent Azawad: Tuaregs, Jihadists, and an Uncertain Future for Mali" (PDF). Barcelona: Barcelona Center for International Affairs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 March 2017. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
- ^ a b c Lia (2015), pp. 31–32.
- ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
- ^ "The Islamic State: More than a Terrorist Group?". E-International Relations. 3 April 2015. Retrieved 2016-07-20.
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- ^ ISBN 978-0-8160-5786-3.
- ^ Torreblanca, José Ignacio (12 July 2010). "Estados-embrión". El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 March 2016.
- ^ Segurado, Nacho (16 April 2015). "¿Por qué Estado Islámico le está ganando la partida a los herederos de Bin Laden?". 20 minutos (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
- ^ Rengel, Carmen (5 April 2015). "Javier Martín: "El Estado Islámico tiene espíritu de gobernar y permanecer"". huffingtonpost.es (in Spanish). Retrieved 12 March 2016.
- ^ Keatinge, Tom (2016-03-08). "Islamic State: The struggle to stay rich - BBC News". Retrieved 17 March 2016.
- ISBN 978-84-9097-054-6. Archived from the originalon 2017-12-03. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
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- ^ "Euromosaic - Swedish in Finland". www.uoc.edu. Retrieved 2017-11-11.
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- ^ "L0601-1850". www.planalto.gov.br. Retrieved 2021-07-17.
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- ^ ISBN 978-140940505-4.
- ^ "Somalia". World Statesmen. Retrieved March 9, 2006. - also shows Italian colonial flag & links to map
- ISBN 978-1848856332.
- Phoenix TV
- ^ Steinmüller, Hans (2018). "Conscription by Capture in the Wa State of Myanmar: acquaintances, anonymity, patronage, and the rejection of mutuality" (PDF). London School of Economics. Archived (PDF) from the original on Jan 9, 2023.
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For Ukraine, even the formal declaration of the Ukrainian SSR, however puppet like, was extremely important. First, it somewhat legitimised the very existence of the Ukrainian state and nation, even if by an "inviolable" union with Russia. Second, it provided an opportunity to create certain state structure, establish state symbols, and even attain an only informal but, as it turned out, crucial membership in the United Nations. Third, the formal existence of the Ukrainian SSR as a distinct ethnic, territorial, and administrative entity with state like features objectively created a legitimate and psychological basis for the eventual formation of a political nation. It has proven much easier to change a nominal "sovereignty" to a real one than to build a state out of several provinces (gubernia) threatened by foreign intervention and civil war, as in 1917–20.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Lia (2015), p. 33.
- ^ Daniel Fahey (19 February 2015). "New insights on Congo's Islamist rebels". The Washington Post. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
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- ^ a b c d e Lia (2015), p. 34.
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- ^ ISBN 978-0674893252.
- ISBN 978-1614996507.
Russia's 2014 military intervention breached [Ukraine's titles to sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability of its borders] de facto, but the Minsk armistice formalises that breach at the international level. Under the armistice, a formal restoration of Ukraine's sovereignty and control of the external border in Donetsk-Luhansk is no longer a matter of title, right, or international law. Instead, that restoration becomes conditional on enshrining the Donetsk-Luhansk proto-state in Ukraine's constitution and legitimising the Moscow-installed authorities there through elections. Moreover, the terms of that restoration are negotiable between Kyiv and Donetsk-Luhansk (i.e., Moscow) under the Minsk armistice.
- ^ Shambarov, V. The State and revolutions (Государство и революции). "Algoritm". Moscow, 2001 (in Russian)
- ^ "Central African Republic rebels declare autonomous state in north". The Washington Post. 15 December 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
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- ^ Defence Journal. Ikram ul-Majeed Sehgal, 2006, Volume 9-10 Collected Issues 12(9)-12 (10) page 47.
- ^ Statement of Albanian PM Sali Berisha during the recognition of the Republic of Kosovo, stating that this is based on a 1991 Albanian law, which recognised the Republic of Kosova Archived April 20, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Ukraine Authorities Clear Kharkiv Building, Arrest Scores Of 'Separatists'". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. April 8, 2014.
- Independent.co.uk. December 2001.
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- ^ Bianco (2015), p. 6.
- ISBN 978-0300166293.
- ^ Gilbert, Martin; Gott, Richard (1967). The Appeasers. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.
- ^ Dwyer 2015, pp. 39, 40, 62.
- ^ Lidow 2016, pp. 116–130.
- ^ "Sri Lanka vs. Tamil Eelam".
- ^ "CFA gave de facto recognition to Eelam: LTTE". 23 February 2007.
- ^ Essen (2018), p. 83.
Bibliography
- Bianco, Lucien (2015). Peasants without the Party: Grassroots Movements in Twentieth Century China. ISBN 978-1563248405.
- Dwyer, Johnny (2015). American Warlord. A true story. New York City: Vintage Books.
- Essen, Michael Fredholm von (2018). Muscovy's Soldiers. The Emergence of the Russian Army 1462–1689. Warwick: Helion & Company. ISBN 978-1912390106.
- Lidow, Nicholai Hart (2016). Violent Order: Understanding Rebel Governance through Liberia's Civil War. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Lia, Brynjar (August 2015). "Understanding Jihadi Proto-States" (PDF). Perspectives on Terrorism. 9 (4): 31–41. ISSN 2334-3745.